OUR VIEW: Looking past Country 500

Saturday

While it’s unfortunate that the Daytona International Speedway announced the Country 500 is no more, the festival did plant an important seed.

The three-day Memorial Day weekend music festival showed that big-time events can do well here in Daytona Beach, and that Daytona International Speedway is a good venue for them.

The Speedway spent $400 million on renovations to transform the sprawling complex (which sits on publicly owned land) into a multi-purpose stadium and a year-round destination, and if the music festival was any indication, the future looks bright; particularly with the success of One Daytona and the two new hotels slated to open in early 2019 right across the street.

[READ: Daytona’s Country 500 music fest won’t return to Speedway]

Thanks to strong acts, attendance and marketing, the Country 500 thrived the first two years, with organizers reporting draws of about 75,000 fans each year. Those numbers are likely to grab the attention of some big-time promoters and, perhaps more importantly, sponsors who are willing to pony up.

The big attraction the first two years of the Country 500 was definitely the strong lineups, featuring top country music acts including Jason Aldean, Kid Rock, Willie Nelson, Florida Georgia Line, Blake Shelton, Miranda Lambert, Brooks & Dunn, Keith Urban, Hank Williams Jr. and Martina McBride.

The success earned the festival an encore this year, and though things derailed, it is still something upon which the Speedway can build.

This year’s struggles can be blamed on a weaker lineup — Dierks Bentley, Billy Currington, Chris Stapleton, Sugarland and Toby Keith to name a few — and lousy weather. Rain even forced the cancellation of some acts. Finally, there was an obvious dial-back on local marketing of the event compared to the first two years.

Attendance figures were not released for this year’s event, but News-Journal Business Editor Clayton Park reported that International Speedway Corp. acknowledged in its second-quarter earnings report that attendance was greatly impacted by Tropical Storm Alberto. The only statement from the Speedway was that tens of thousands of country music fans attended.

Maybe that explains this year’s slow-down, or at least provides some key lessons.

That leaves us with the million-dollar question: What’s the next big draw?

There’s the Challenge Daytona international middle-distance triathlon this weekend, which should see a good turnout. The thrill of just being in the Speedway is a strong lure, as evident from past events such as the Daytona Beach half marathon and 5K races. There’s also the annual Daytona Turkey Run. But these are not big draws like the Country 500.

Still, there are plenty of opportunities out there. While country music felt like a good fit for the Speedway, music festivals in general have grown in popularity, not just in Florida but around the country.

Word on the next big event is mum so far, but the Speedway did say in an email, "We are in the midst of negotiations right now for a new music opportunity for the future."

With the Speedway’s now-proven track record of big-time, big-venue success, the right promoter with the right mix of stars may be just around the corner.